What are transferable skills and why are they important in the workplace? The Education and Skills Partnership (ESP) delves a little deeper…
It has become increasingly important for an employee to possess a set of skills that can be applied across different job roles and industries. Known as transferable skills, these skills are useful for a variety of professions and can help give you an edge over the competition.
What are transferable skills?
Quite simply, transferable skills or ‘soft skills’ are the abilities developed throughout your career which can be transferred and applied to different contexts. These are not limited to a specific job title or industry, so let’s break down some essential transferable skills.
• Customer service skills
These particularly valuable skills include being able to measure effectiveness, build brand and influence people. They mean the skill holder can articulate ideas clearly, listen actively, and convey information effectively. These are useful for customer or public facing roles, who have to collaborate with or influence external and internal stakeholders.
• Project management skills
These skills come in handy in any industry, helping to prioritise and track tasks, meet deadlines, and efficiently allocate resources. Having these skills helps to ensure productivity and reduce stress for everyone involved. ESP’s latest simple course ‘P3.Express’ supports project planning and collaboration.
• Strong leadership skills
These encompass the ability to inspire and motivate others and make informed decisions. This is relevant in management positions, project leadership, team coordination, and can lead to a departmental lead, team manager, even an event organiser. ESP’s ‘Leadership and Management’ courses help individuals effectively manage teams with confidence.
• Coaching skills
Being able to collaborate and work in a team helps to achieve common goals and fosters a peaceful and productive work environment. These skills are transferable across leadership and management roles.
• Operations management skills
Being able to gather and evaluate data to make informed decisions and solve complex problems are examples of good operations management skills, coupled with the ability to objectively analyse information, evaluate arguments, and lead change. Our ‘Operations Manager Level 5’ course is ideal for building management skillsets.
An investment in transferable skills is an investment in your business. By developing transferable skills, employees are able to adapt to new opportunities and challenges. The benefits of having employees with transferable skills are numerous.
• It can build agile teams that will be dynamic, innovative, and able to tackle tough projects, working towards a goal together, which fosters inclusion and collaboration, and leads to increased employee satisfaction and productivity.
• You are essentially building a talent pool within your organisation that can move seamlessly into different teams or departments.
• You’ll be able to keep up with market shifts more efficiently, which is crucial since businesses are quite prone to volatility at times.
Examples of applying transferable skills
Skills can be applied in different scenarios, let’s take a look at some:
Are you a military veteran? It’s important to remember that transferable skills are not exclusive to any specific profession. Veterans have acquired valuable transferable skills during their service that can be applied to the civilian workforce.
Two skills that are prominent with former military personnel are project management and effective communication, both well-ingrained in military training. Managing and delivering projects on time and efficiently and being able to communicate important information quickly and clearly makes veterans valuable assets in civilian roles in any industry.
Looking to transition careers? Transferable skills can make career transitions easier and provide new paths for professional development. For example, having basic teacher training can open doors to various positions – in nursery schools, coaching, learner development roles, or as a teaching assistant.
And finally… gain skills when you leave school
As we enter the summer holidays, you might find yourself with extra free time, perhaps in a transitional phase of your life and trying to figure out what to do next. Why not better yourself by developing transferable skills?
Consider Free-Courses-For-Jobs, refresher courses, introductory programmes, or even structured courses that equip you with essential, transferable skills. Level up your skill set, enhance your CV and be ready for whatever opportunity might come your way.
So, how can employers facilitate the acquisition of transferable skills among their staff? The Education and Skills Partnership (ESP) is passionate about learning and development. We work with employers and employees alike to design a training and education programme that fits the needs of both parties.
We offer courses tailored to meet your company’s needs, covering a range of skillsets, including those mentioned above and more.
To discuss how we can support you on your journey of developing transferable skills, get in touch with our team for a free consultation.
https://esp-ac.uk
